How to determine the optimal weight for your height. Weight calculation by height and age. Calculation of the ideal weight. Share your result with your friends

29.08.2021

Before you start losing or gaining weight, you need to decide on the end result. A goal is needed. A tourist who goes on a hike without a map looks stupid. People who begin to adjust their weight without having decided on the final result look unreasonable. This issue requires specifics, that is, do not think about the fact that "I want to lose weight." Decide how many pounds you need to lose, or gain, to gain your ideal weight. If you have an ultimate goal, it will be easier for you to develop a daily routine.

How to correctly determine your ideal weight?

Many people make the mistake of trying to fit their physique to universal standards. For example, 90 - 60 - 90, or they are trying to create a figure like that of another person (famous athlete, TV presenter, actress, model). This is not worth doing, for the following reasons.

1. Our appearance and physique are greatly influenced by genetics (heredity). If your parents are thin and short, do not indulge yourself in the hope of making a figure like a model.

2. For many of the people we see on television, the job is to "look good." They are doing just this all day - they maintain their appearance and weight in excellent condition. Most of us have a different profession, and we do not have enough time and money to keep ourselves in optimal shape.

The surest way to calculate your ideal weight is to remember yourself before you put on those extra pounds. Check out the photos in the family album. Imagine how you felt when you were in optimal shape. Now, many experts, when talking about the ideal weight (figure), pay attention not to numerical parameters (weight, size, volume), but to a person's feelings.

When you determine your ultimate goal, remember in what period of your life you felt the best, and what your weight and volume were then. Many people feel optimally about 1 to 5 extra pounds. At the same time, they have good health, well-being and mood. If you are one of these people, then you should not try to get rid of those extra pounds.

Often the pursuit of the notorious ideal only worsens health and mood.

To make it easier to calculate your ideal weight, experts have developed special formulas. First of all, you need to determine your own body type. The simplest method of determining what type of physique you personally have is to take a tailor's tape and measure your wrist at the narrowest point.

If it turns out less than 14 cm - the body type is asthenic

If the wrist is from 14 to 18 cm - the physique is normosthenic

With wrist sizes over 18 cm - hypersthenic physique

French anthropologist Paul Broca proposed the simplest formula for calculating the ideal weight. Ideal weight is equal to height minus one hundred. But this weight is considered ideal for women from 40 to 50 years old. For young women from 20 to 30 years old, it should be less by 10 - 12 percent, and for women over 50 years old - more by 5 - 7%.

American scientists offer their own formula for calculating the ideal weight:

Ideal weight = 50 kg. + (Height, see minus 150) multiply by 0.75. For example, with a height of 170 cm, it turns out so 50 kg. + (170 - 150) x 0.75 = 65kg.

There is a Lorentz formula, according to which the ideal weight is calculated as follows.

Ideal weight = Height, cm. Minus 100 minus 0.25 x (Height, cm. Minus 150). For example, with a height of 170 cm, it turns out so 170 - 100 - 0.25 x (170 - 150) = 65 kg.

Quite accurately, you can calculate the ideal weight using the Quetelet index. To calculate the Quetelet index, you need to divide your weight (in kg.) By your height (in m.), Squared. The norm is a value that does not go beyond 20 - 23.8. The Quetelet index varies with age and body type.

You can determine whether your weight is normal using the following formula:

ideal weight = (height, see divide by 2) minus (40,000 divide by height, see) - this formula is for women

ideal weight = 4/5 x height, see minus 70 - for men.

The easiest way is along the fat fold on the abdominal wall, located 3 centimeters above the navel. Normally, it should be 1 - 2 centimeters.

After determining your body type, adjust the results. If you have an asthenic type, then subtract about 10% from the result, and with a hypersthenic type, on the contrary, add.

Additional articles with useful information

Description of the different forms of obesity

Overweight is a common situation in our world, but unfortunately many people confuse excess body fat with obesity, which is a medical condition.

Weight-loss workouts in the buttock area

The lower back and buttocks are primarily affected by weight gain. It is rare for anyone to bring this part of the body to an optimal form without appropriate exercises.

You can calculate the body mass index using the formula BMI = weight / height ^ 2, the calculation is simplified using the online BMI calculator. The body mass index is calculated in terms of height and weight; for men and women, these indicators will differ. Depending on the BMI indicator, you can find out what recommendations to follow if you are overweight, and, conversely, if you are underweight.

Body Mass Index Calculator

BMI table

The BMI calculator counts correctly, only for adults (over 18).

Instructions for determining BMI

The BMI calculator has required fields to fill out, where you should specify:

weight (in kilograms);
height (in centimeters);
press the button to calculate the indicators.

The resulting indicator (index) of the ratio of height and weight should be compared with the BMI table.

Underweight. The owners of underweight can become for several reasons - congenital constitution (lean physique), insufficient nutrition (unbalanced diet), hormonal disorders, metabolism too fast, and hyperglycemia - the body's ability to absorb glucose at a high rate. Hormonal disorders must be corrected by an endocrinologist. The rest of the violations require self-correction of dietary errors: increase the amount of carbohydrates and fats. Much more energy must be absorbed than such an organism expends, although this happens quite quickly. Eating simple carbohydrates is not prohibited. The loads should be aimed at, aerobic training will only slow down the process of gaining body weight.
Normal weight. Happy owners of the norm should only follow in the same spirit. With a balanced diet and moderate exercise, body weight will be held in place. Overeating may increase the BMI, so you should not increase the calorie intake, so as not to resort to diets later.
Overweight. Those whose index has exceeded the 25 mark should reconsider their lifestyle. First, review your diet. If the menu is dominated by carbohydrates (flour, sweet), you should reduce their consumption to a minimum. Remove sugary foods and increase protein in your diet. Second, analyze your physical activity. With an immobile lifestyle, fats are especially well absorbed, since the body does not spend energy, which means it accumulates subcutaneous fat. Start exercising, but monitor the condition of the joints, with overweight, the joints are already exposed to stress.
Obesity. One of the causes of obesity is not only an excess of calories and an inactive lifestyle, but also hormonal disorders. Hormonal imbalances, such as excess female hubbub and lack of male hubbub, can lead to excess body fat, not to mention diseases such as diabetes. This problem can only be solved with hormone therapy. If there are no violations, it is necessary to follow the measures as in the recommendations for overweight. In any case, reduce the total calorie content of the diet, remove simple carbohydrates (sweets, and even fruits), walk more. AND do not eat 3-4 hours before bedtime.
Severe obesity. If you are severely obese, you should see your doctor. Rather, this degree of obesity is not triggered simply by diet. It is necessary to pass tests for hormones and identify the content of enzymes, the possible absence of which is unable to digest certain nutrients - fats and carbohydrates. Otherwise, proper nutrition and walking will not hurt.

Underweight. Men also have a number of reasons for underweight - hormonal imbalances, hyperglycemia, increased metabolism and lack of nutrition. With high intense loads and work associated with physical labor, an excess of calories in the diet should be provided, exceeding the amount of carbohydrates over proteins and fats. You need to eat often, at least 6 times a day. Workouts should last no more than an hour,.
Normal weight. With proper nutrition and exercise, stick to your usual lifestyle without significantly changing anything in your diet and exercise.
Overweight. In men, a common case of overweight is not only food cravings, but also drinks such as beer. The phytoestrogen content of beer increases the production of female hormones, which leads to the accumulation of female-type fat (belly and thighs). In any case, there is the possibility of hormonal disruption, towards an increase in estrogens and a decrease in androgens. If the cause is poor diet, eliminate foods with a high glycemic index from the diet and exercise more.
Obesity. In men, as in women, the cause of obesity can be disorders of the endocrine system, as well as an excess of calories in the diet. Overeating can also be negatively influenced by socio-psychological factors. Therefore, you should rule out all diseases and switch to a low-carb diet high in protein and fiber.
Severe obesity. An urgent need to consult an endocrinologist or gastroenterologist. You can also take measures to exclude the possibility of gaining even more weight, which are recommended for overweight and obesity.

It is necessary for every modern person to know how to calculate body weight and draw the correct conclusions about the state of the indices, which show whether you have obesity or a predisposition to this ailment. We offer you basic methods on how to calculate your body weight using simple formulas and tables.

Human body weight and excess

Human body weight is the most important indicator of our health status, determining whether nutrition meets the needs of the body. Distinguish between normal, overweight or underweight.

Naturally, obesity necessarily implies the presence of excess body weight, formed due to the accumulation of fat.

However, the concept of excess body weight is not synonymous with obesity and has an independent meaning. So, many people have a slight excess of body weight, which does not reach the degree of illness, that is, obesity. In addition, excess body weight is due to developed muscles (in athletes or people engaged in hard physical labor) or fluid retention in the body in a number of diseases.

In the same way, the lack of body weight does not always reach the degree of the disease - protein-energy deficiency. Many methods have been developed to control body weight. Usually they are aimed at comparing height and body weight and comparing the result with standard indicators calculated on the basis of various formulas or given in special tables. Earlier in domestic medicine, body weight exceeding the norm for a given adult by 5-14% was called excessive, and exceeding the norm by 15% or more indicated obesity as a disease. At the same time, in foreign medical practice, obesity was considered to be an excess of body weight, reaching 20% or more in comparison with the norms adopted in the tables or obtained by calculation formulas. As a result, the prevalence rates of obesity in our country were higher than in other countries.

Brock's formula

Until now, Broca's formula is popular, which was proposed over a century ago by the French surgeon and anatomist Paul Brock. According to this formula, the following norm indicators are obtained.

Adequate body weight

In men of average build:

with growth up to 165 cm, the norm of body weight in kilograms is equal to growth in centimeters minus 100;
with a height of 166-175 cm - minus 105;
with a height of 175 cm and more - minus 110.

Obesity or obesity: methods for assessing body weight

Women of appropriate height and build should have about 5% less body weight than men.

A simplified calculation option is also proposed:

for women under the age of 35, the normal body weight should be equal to height in centimeters minus 110;
over 35 years old - height in centimeters minus 100.

In people with a narrow chest (asthenic physique), the obtained data decrease by 5%, and in people with a wide chest (hypersthenic physique) - they increase by 5%.

I would like to note that the popular due to its simplicity formula “height in centimeters minus 100”, used for people of any height, distorts Broca's indicator.

How to determine BMI: calculating body mass index

Currently, in international practice, a very informative indicator is used - the calculation of the body mass index (BMI), also called the Quetelet index. In 1997 and 2000. The WHO recommended assessing body weight based on BMI, with which Russian doctors also agreed. However, in the report "Prevention, diagnosis and treatment of primary arterial hypertension in the Russian Federation" (2000), experts from the Scientific Society for the Study of Arterial Hypertension, the All-Russian Scientific Society of Cardiology and the Interdepartmental Council on Cardiovascular Diseases made an amendment: as the lower limit of BMI, characterizing normal body weight, it is proposed to consider 20 kg / m 2 instead of the WHO-recommended indicator of 18.5 kg / m 2 is shown in the table. The reason for this proposal is simple: a number of studies have found that among people with low BMI values (less than 19-20 kg / m2), there is a higher mortality rate not only from cancer or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, but also from cardiovascular diseases.

Before determining the BMI, the available body weight in kilograms is divided by the height in meters squared:

BMI = body weight (in kilograms) / (height in 2 meters).

Body Mass Index Assessment Table

The body mass index table allows you to assess your health and anticipate the possible risks of developing chronic diseases. It describes the characteristics of the body mass index (BMI). We warn you that the assessment of body mass index should be carried out by a qualified doctor, taking into account your individual characteristics.

BMI, kg / m 2	Characteristic
Less than 20 (18.5) *	Underweight
20 (18,5) - 24,9	Normal body weight
	Overweight
	Obesity 1st degree (mild)
	Obesity grade 2 (moderate)
40 and more	Obesity grade 3 (severe)

I will demonstrate the application of the formula with a specific example. Let's say you are 165 cm tall and weigh 67 kilograms.

Convert height from centimeters to meters - 1.65 m.
Square 1.65 m for 2.72.
Now divide 67 (weight) by 2.72. Your result is 25.7 kg / m 2, which corresponds to the upper limit of the norm.

It is possible not to calculate BMI individually, but to use a special table, which was developed by D.G.Bessenen in 2001.

Please note that it has a number of disadvantages: there are no BMI indicators below 19 kg / m2, and BMIs characterizing different degrees of obesity are given in abbreviated form in the table.

Table - Body mass indices in accordance with height and body weight:

Body mass index

Body weight, kg (rounded off)

Waist hip index

In recent years, it has been found that the risk of developing a number of diseases depends not only on the degree and duration of obesity, but also on the nature of the distribution of fat in the body.

Depending on the localization of body fat, there are:

abdominal obesity (also called visceral, android, "upper", "apple" type, male type) - excess fat is located mainly on the abdomen and in the upper body. This type of obesity is more common among men;
gluteofemoral obesity (it is also called gluteal femoral, gynoid, "lower", "pear" type, female type) - excess fat is located mainly on the thighs, buttocks and in the lower torso, which is typical for women.

With abdominal obesity, even minimal excess body weight increases the risk of cardiovascular disease and death from them. The likelihood of coronary artery disease increases, as well as its three main risk factors: arterial hypertension, type 2 diabetes mellitus and lipid metabolism disorders (increased blood cholesterol and other indicators). The combination of these diseases and conditions is called metabolic syndrome. Its treatment, including diet therapy, is of paramount importance. Moreover, treatment is indicated not only with diagnosed abdominal obesity, but also with a significant excess of body weight (BMI - 27-29.9 kg / m2), if fat is deposited mainly in the upper body.

Waist hip index is the ratio of the waist circumference (measured above the navel) to the largest hip circumference (measured at the level of the buttocks).

On the contrary, gluteofemoral obesity is not associated with a pronounced additional risk and threatens with minimal medical consequences. Its treatment is mainly cosmetic. Note that we are talking about obesity without concomitant diseases, especially without type 2 diabetes and arterial hypertension.

To establish the type of obesity, it is necessary to determine the waist / hip index (ITB).

It is permissible to measure only the waist circumference. It is recognized that the risk of developing metabolic syndrome:

moderately increases with a waist circumference of 80 cm or more in women, 90 cm or more in men;
increases sharply with a waist circumference of 88 cm or more in women, 102 cm or more in men.

Modern data require new approaches to assessing body weight. In particular, it was found that underweight is a risk factor for increased mortality from some non-communicable diseases. The concept of adipose tissue as metabolically inert, being an exclusively energy depot, has also changed. It has now been established that adipose tissue is a diffuse endocrine gland that produces a number of hormones and biologically active substances.

Table - Biologically active substances secreted by adipose tissue:

Substance groups	Substance names
Hormones	Testosterone, leptin, estrone, angiotensinogen
Cytokines	Tumor necrosis factor, interleukin-6
Proteins (proteins)	Protein that stimulates acetylation Plasminogen activator-1 inhibitor Complement, adiponectin Transforming growth factor beta
Regulators	Lipoprotein lipase
lipoprotein	Hormone-sensitive lipase
metabolism	Cholesterol Ester Transfer Protein
Free polyunsaturated fatty acids	Prostaglandins

Leptin and obesity

Separately, it is worth dwelling on leptin, a hormone produced by fat cells, discovered in 1995. Its level in the blood reflects the energy reserves of adipose tissue, affects appetite, energy consumption and expenditure, alters the metabolism of fats and glucose. Leptin and obesity are closely related: this substance slows down the metabolism, but when deficient can cause malfunction of the body.

According to the scientific data obtained, only excess body weight, which has not reached the degree of obesity, plays a positive role in the normal functioning of the body.

Lack of fat reserves and leptin deficiency can impair fertility in women with severely underweight women, for example, after fasting therapy or with anorexia nervosa, which is often accompanied by amenorrhea. Don't think that science is trying to rehabilitate obesity.

Thus, women with preserved menstrual function and overweight are less likely to develop breast cancer, bone resorption (destruction of bone tissue) and postmenopausal osteoporosis. The negative effect of overweight (without obesity) on lipid and carbohydrate metabolism, as well as on the level of blood pressure in apparently healthy men and women, has not been established. Foreign studies conducted by insurance companies found the lowest mortality rate among people whose body weight exceeded the norm by 10%.

Specialists of the Research Center for Preventive Medicine of the Ministry of Health of Russia, who have been observing men and women aged 40-59 for 20 years, have found that life expectancy is dependent on BMI. So, 50% of the "thin" and "fat" surveyed died earlier than those who had an average BMI - from 20 to 30 kg / m2. At the same time, "thin" men and women died earlier than "fat" ones. Why this happens and whether people with low body weight have other risk factors is still unknown.

Calculating the ideal body weight

Height, cm	Ideal weight, kg
155-165	growth minus 100
166-175	growth minus 100
176-185	growth minus 110
186+	growth minus 115

You can also use a modified formula: ideal body weight = (height in cm minus 100) and another minus 10% for men; BMI = (height in cm minus 100) and another minus 15% - for women:

1 degree of obesity - the actual body weight exceeds the ideal by less than 30%;
2 degree of obesity - if the actual weight exceeds the ideal by 31-50%;
3 degree of obesity - if the actual weight exceeds the ideal by 51-99%;
4 degree of obesity - if the actual weight exceeds the ideal by as much as 100% or more.

Currently, in most countries of the world, body mass index (BMI), or Quetelet index, is used to determine normal and overweight in humans:

BMI = M / P 2, where M is the mass in kg; Р 2 - height in meters squared.

According to the international classification, an indicator from 18.5 to 24.9 kg / m 2 is considered the norm. A reading below 18.5 indicates underweight. If the BMI is in the range of 25 to 29.9, this is overweight, and obesity is diagnosed with a BMI of more than 30.

For example, your height is 181 cm, weight is 99 kg. Let's make a simple calculation: 1.81 2 = 3.2761. Dividing 99 by 3.2761 gives you a BMI of 30.22, which means you are one of the many with weight problems:

Obesity grade 1 (mild obesity) - with a BMI between 27 and 35;
2 (moderate) - with a range of values 35-39.9;
3 (severe or painful) - with a BMI of 40 or more.

Table of normal human body weight by age

Height, cm	Person's age, years
	20-30		30-40		40-50		50-60		60+
	M	F	M	F	M	F	M	F	M	F
150	53	48	57	51	60	54	60	54	58	52
152	54	49	58	52	60	54	61	55	59	53
154	55	51	58	52	61	55	61	55	60	54
156	57	52	59	53	61	55	62	56	61	55
158	58	53	59	53	62	56	63	57	62	56
160	59	54	61	55	63	57	64	58	63	57
162	61	56	62	56	64	58	65	59	65	58
164	62	57	63	57	66	59	67	60	66	59
166	63	58	65	58	67	60	68	61	67	60
168	65	59	66	59	68	61	70	63	69	62
170	66	60	68	61	70	63	71	64	71	64
172	68	61	69	62	72	65	73	66	73	66
174	69	63	71	64	73	66	75	67	75	67
176	71	64	73	65	75	68	76	69	77	69
178	72	65	74	67	77	69	78	71	79	71
180	74	67	76	68	79	71	80	72	81	73
182	78	70	78	70	81	73	82	74	83	75
184	79	71	80	72	83	75	84	76	85	76
186	81	73	82	74	85	77	86	77	86	77
188	83	75	85	77	88	79	88	79	87	78
190	86	77	87	78	89	80	89	80	87	77

For the diagnosis of obesity, in addition to the total mass, the volume of the waist and hips is important. So, for men, a waist circumference of 94 cm is considered permissible, for women - up to 88 cm. With a waist circumference of 94-101 cm in men and 102 cm or more in women, there is a high risk of metabolic complications.

If your waist circumference exceeds the indicated numbers, you have an abdominal (visceral) type of obesity, that is, fat is deposited around the internal organs - the liver, pancreas, heart, disrupting their work. It is this type of obesity that is a risk factor for the development of diabetes mellitus, coronary heart disease, arterial hypertension, and myocardial infarction!

Patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus, whose body weight is normal, should not worry about the impact of obesity on diabetes.

Patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus, whose weight is normal (there are very few of them), you need to try to keep it at numbers close to ideal, so you should definitely strive for the ideal weight for your age.

Well, for people with type 1 and 2 diabetes mellitus, overweight or obesity, the basics of calculating the calorie content of the diet need to be remembered and applied daily, in the treatment of diabetes mellitus this is the most important thing for you.

Calorie counting is also important for people who are underweight, they already know that getting better is not an easy task. A correctly calculated diet with the determination of the need for kilocalories will allow you to gain the missing kilograms.

Calculate your ideal weight almost everyone has tried at least once. There are many formulas by which you can determine if your body weight is normal. The simplest method for calculating the normal body weight is considered: "height minus 100" - for men and "height minus 110" - for women.

However, this approach does not give a true idea of whether this particular person is overweight.

It is clear that people with asthenic build will weigh less than normosthenics, and normostenic people will weigh less than large-boned ones. In addition, an athlete's excess muscle mass can be interpreted as obesity, or vice versa, the body weight of an asthenic teenage girl can be considered insufficient.

Ideal weight

Currently ideal weight(normal body weight) is determined using a number of indicators that take into account the characteristic features of the structure of the individual. This approach allows you to more accurately determine whether you are overweight, which, by the way, from a medical point of view, may not yet be obese.

Obesity

Although we are accustomed, following the fashion, to hang the tag "obesity" on everyone who does not look like anorexic catwalk beauties, there are a number of medical indicators for diagnosing this serious disease that are very different from our aesthetic ideas about beauty.

Endocrinologists distinguish between 4 degrees of obesity. With 1 degree of obesity, overweight exceeds ideal, or normal - 10-29%, with 2 degrees of obesity - by 30-49%, with 3 degrees of obesity - by 50-99%, with 4 degrees of obesity - by 100% more.

To determine what degree of obesity a particular person suffers from, it remains to find out what a normal, or ideal, body weight is.

What should be the ideal weight (ideal body weight)

The most scientifically grounded, proven in practice and easy to measure is such an indicator as body mass index (BMI)... The body mass index allows you to determine the degree of overweight or underweight.

Determination of body mass index (BMI)

From a medical point of view, body weight is considered normal in a fairly wide range, which depends on body structure, age, gender, race, etc. The ideal body weight will be, accordingly, body weight, taking into account all these indicators.

Body mass index can be calculated using the formula:

The body weight in kilograms should be divided by the height squared in meters, i.e .:

BMI = weight (kg): (height (m)) 2

For example, a person's weight = 85 kg, height = 164 cm.Therefore, BMI in this case is equal to: BMI = 85: (1.64X1.64) = 31.6.

The indicator of body mass index was proposed as a determinant of normal body weight by the Belgian sociologist and statistician Adolphe Ketele ( Adolphe quetelet) back in 1869.

The body mass index is used to determine the degree of obesity and the degree of risk of developing cardiovascular diseases, diabetes and other complications associated with overweight and obesity.

Body mass types	BMI (kg / m 2)	Risk of comorbidities
Underweight	<18,5	Low (increased risk of other diseases)
Normal body weight	18,5-24,9	Normal
Overweight	25,0-29,9	Elevated
Obesity I degree	30,0-34,9	High
Obesity II degree	35,0-39,9	Very tall
Obesity III degree	40	Extremely high

The table below shows the parameters at which the body weight remains within the normal range from a medical point of view.

Normal weight(marked in green in the table):

Overweight is in yellow, obesity is in red.

In addition, a number of other indices can be used to determine normal body weight:

Broca's index is used with a height of 155-170 cm. The normal body weight is equal to (height [cm] - 100) - 10 (15%).
Breitman index. Normal body weight is calculated by the formula - height [cm] 0.7 - 50 kg.
Borngardt index. Ideal body weight is calculated by the formula - height [cm] chest circumference [cm] / 240.
Davenport Index. The mass of a person [g] is divided by the height [cm] squared. An excess of the indicator above 3.0 indicates the presence of obesity. (obviously this is the same BMI, only divided by 10)
Oder index. Normal body weight is equal to the distance from the crown of the head to the symphysis (pubic joint of the pubic bones) [cm] 2 - 100.
Noorden index. Normal weight is equal to height [cm] 420/1000.
Tatonya index. Normal body weight = height - (100+ (height-100) / 20)

In clinical practice, the Broca index is most often used to assess body weight.

In addition to height and weight indicators, the method for determining the thickness of the skin fold, proposed by Korovin, can be used. This technique determines the thickness of the skin fold in the epigastric region (normally -1.1-1.5 cm). An increase in the thickness of the fold to 2 cm indicates the presence of obesity.

Abdominal obesity

Another measurement option, which is proposed to determine the degree of obesity, along with calculating the body mass index, is the measurement of the waist volume, since it is believed that the most dangerous for health is the deposition of fat along the visceral-abdominal type (on the internal organs). The waist for women is considered normal not exceeding 88 cm and for men - no more than 106 cm.

Although the indicators here are, of course, more subjective, because the waist volume largely depends on the height and build of a person. So, women with a pear-shaped figure may have obesity on the hips and lower body, but the waist will remain thin, while women with an apple-shaped figure (with thin legs, but an excess waist) will recognized as suffering from abdominal obesity.

Body volume index

One of the relatively new methods for determining excess body weight is based on the use of three-dimensional scanning, which calculates body volume index(Eng. Body volume index, BVI). This method of measuring obesity was proposed in 2000 as an alternative body mass index that does not provide accurate information about the risks of obesity for each individual patient. At the moment, the method has passed clinical trials in the USA and Europe as part of a two-year project Body Benchmark Study.